MONTICELLO, Ill. (AP) -- The longtime chief judge of Illinois' Sixth Judicial District plans to retire at the end of July.
Piatt County Circuit Judge John Shonkwiler announced his plans in a letter to the local bar association. Fellow Circuit Judge Dan Flannell says the 79-year-old Shonkwiler also went on an extended sick leave late last week after having surgery for an unspecified medical problem.
Flannell told The (Champaign) News-Gazette (http://bit.ly/JaSadV) that Shonkwiler plans to return to work for a short time before his retirement.
Shonkwiler has been chief judge in the east-central Illinois district since 1994. The district includes Piatt, Champaign, Macon, Douglas, Moultrie and DeWitt counties.
The Monticello native has been a circuit court judge in Piatt County since 1974.
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Information from: The News-Gazette, http://www.news-gazette.com
(Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
